Marriage Claws

by Paige Cuccaro

“Kate, no. Please . . . Don’t. I shouldn’t have stayed away so long, let so much time pass without checking on you.” He kissed my lips, the touch gentle and full of compassion. He pulled away, wiping my tear from my cheek with a soft brush of his fingers. He straightened, reaching for the plastic cup and straw on the nightstand. “Drink,” he said.

  I sipped, the cool water icing my throat, soothing the raw burn. Swallowing still hurt, and I let my head fall back against my pillow as he set the cup away. “He wanted to keep you from becoming alpha,” I said. “I thought I could convince him to let it go. But he . . . he wanted to stop you. He wanted to kill me.”

  “I know, Kate.” He cupped my face in his hands, leaning close to kiss my forehead again, stroking his thumbs on my cheeks, holding me captive with his eyes. “I’ll spend my life making it up to you. I swear it.”

  I blinked at him, trying to understand what he was saying. “No, Jack. It was my fault. I was trying to help. I thought I could convince him. I wanted to help you reach your dreams.”

  “You were fighting my battles.” He closed his eyes, touching his forehead to mine. “I shouldn’t have left you. I was being stubborn and arrogant. I was being a coward. It was my job to protect you. Damn it. I should’ve been there.”

  “He wouldn’t listen,” I said, eyes closed, loving the feel of him so close, so warm and strong. “I tried to tell him. It didn’t matter how I met you, why I agreed to marry you. I told him I was going to be your mate . . . if you still wanted me.”

  He lifted his head, brows furrowed, studying me. “If I still . . . ? You told him you were going to marry me?”

  I nodded.

  “You want to marry me?”

  “Yes.”

  His expression turned grim and he sat straight looking away. “Kate, I can’t.”

  He pushed to his feet and my heart pinched. A part of me had expected this, hadn’t I? I turned my head, staring out the window, staring anywhere but at Jack—at the disappointment I was sure to see in his eyes. “I understand. Everything’s different now. I’m different. I did try to stop him. I did. But I couldn’t. He was so strong. And now . . . now his wolf mojo is in me instead of yours. I’m sorry, Jack. I wanted it to be you.”

  “Wait. What are you saying? You don’t think . . .” He came back to me, settling on the edge of the bed again. He hooked my chin with his finger, turned my face to him. “Kate. Marcus didn’t turn you. I did.”

  “But he bit me . . . a lot.”

  A careful smile broke across his lips. “I know. And his bite will bring you over to our kind permanently. But it was my wolf, my . . . love that imbued you with the mother’s power—that started your transformation. I gave you the gift of the wolf. His bite is just awakening it, making it an organic part of you. Making it permanent.”

  I blinked, trying not to smile too big. I was feeling better—better by the second, like my body’s healing had kicked into overdrive. “You love me?”

  Yep, that’s what I took from his explanation. My heart skipped faster.

  He laughed. “I do.”

  “So what does this mean for our deal? I mean, it’s not like we have a choice, right? Our wolves want what they want. No point trying to ignore it. They’re going to keep pulling us back together. Aren’t they?”

  “Most likely,” he said, a soft chuckle in his voice. But then his smile wavered and he looked away. “Kate . . . I failed you. I can’t save the diner. I know I promised. I tried, but contracts have already been signed. Money has changed hands. I can refuse to honor those contracts once I take control. I will, if that’s what you want. But . . . it could take years before you could reopen there. You agreed to marry me if I saved your diner. I failed. I let you down, and that will always be between us. How can we begin a life together on an unfulfilled promise?”

  I shook my head, surprised that it didn’t spin my brain or send a jolt of pain through my body. I was feeling better.

  “Jack, no. It doesn’t matter. It wasn’t the place that I cherished. It was the people. I couldn’t abandon them. They needed the diner. It wasn’t just a place to work. It was their home. But they’re stronger than I thought. A few of them have already found new homes, new jobs, and with my help the rest will too.”

  “I can help with that.” He leaned down and stole a quick kiss from my lips. “The Pensione Company has its hands in a lot of business ventures: restaurants, boutiques, bars. Every employee at The Sweet Spot will have a job—a career, if they want it. That I can promise.”

  “Really? George too?” I pushed up in my bed, the pillows slipping down to my back.

  “We own two four-star restaurants. George will be fine. I swear it.”

  “That’s wonderful, Jack. Thank you.”

  “Don’t thank me,” he said. “Forgive me, Kate. Tell me you forgive me for disappointing you, for letting you down, for leaving you unprotected. Forgive me for being such a blind, cowardly fool.”

  I laughed. He was just too adorable. “There’s nothing to forgive. But if you need to hear the words . . . I forgive you.”

  Jack sighed, a huge smile blooming across his face. “Marry me, Kate. Marry me for real. Marry me for love. No contracts, no business agreements. Just marry me.”

  “Yes,” I said, wrapping my arms around his neck, the IV tube stretching. “I—wait. What about Alexia? She said you asked her to marry you. You said you had.”

  “I did,” he said sitting straighter. “Years ago. I told you we used to see each other. I couldn’t go through with it, though. Not even if it meant being passed over as alpha. She was never an option for me. You know, she actually stole my phone. Went through all my contacts and called a few people to tell them we were back together. Crazy. Luckily no one believed her. What did she tell you?”

  My eyes widened. “Me?” I sighed. “I can’t remember.”

  “It doesn’t matter.” One hand braced on the bed at my side, he wrapped his free arm around my waist, pulled me close. His fresh woodsy scent seemed to intensify, swirling around me so it was the smell I breathed into my lungs before he took my mouth in a kiss. The heat of his body pressed to mine, permeated my skin, sinking deep to my very core. He was in me, around me, a part of me. We were separate, but one. We were life mates—born of different species but meant for each other.

  A whip of blinding pain snapped down my spine. I cried out.

  Jack’s embrace tightened around me. “What is it?”

  The excruciating sensation dissipated just as quickly as it had come and I leaned back, my breaths coming quick and shallow, my mind searching my body for the cause. “I don’t know. It was like something inside me just suddenly lit up with pain. That was weird. I feel okay now. I mean, I’m a little sore in spots but . . .”

  “You’re lucky to be alive,” Jack said. “The wolf hadn’t taken hold enough inside you to fight the damage. They had to operate.”

  “Really?” I looked down at myself, gathering up my hospital gown until I could see my belly. A long, jagged scar stretched across me, the skin pink and puckered, but already healing. “How long have I been out?”

  “Three days,” he said.

  I looked back to my stomach, a flash of butterscotch fur flickered through my mind, his massive head and bloody teeth as Marcus ripped me open. I shuddered and pushed the images from my thoughts. “I’m nearly healed. Even with the operation, how am I already this far along?”

  “Lenny said you were already showing signs that the wolf was taking hold, days ago,” Jack said. “Enhanced senses, smells, hearing, touch . . . We have accelerated healing abilities. Your wolf must be working to strengthen your body before the final push to your first shift.”

  Without warning another bolt of pain lanced through me, snapping my muscles tight, straining my bones so hard it felt like they might break. I screamed, the searing pain exploding through my brain.

  “Kate, try to relax. Don’t fight it,” Jack said pushing to his feet. He held my shoulders, kept me from writh
ing out of bed.

  Seconds later the agony subsided. I was left in a pool of sweat, breathing hard, fighting to calm my panicked heart. “It’s happening now, isn’t it?”

  “Yes. We have to get you out of here,” he said pulling his phone from his breast pocket. “I’ll take you back to the apartment.”

  “The apartment? What if I damage something?”

  “Don’t worry about it. You’ll be safe there. Contained. Away from anything that might confuse or trigger your instincts,” he said, bringing the phone to his ear. “Alan. Bring the car to the side entrance. We’re taking Miss Affetto to the apartment.”

  Another agonizing stab of pain jolted through me, arching my back, pulling the muscles in my legs until they snapped. I screamed, not caring who heard.

  The door to my hospital room swung open and my brother and Lenny rushed in. Lenny locked the door behind them just as the worst of my pain ebbed away.

  I panted, not wanting to look at my legs.

  “Kate, what’s wrong?” George looked to Jack. “What’s happening?”

  “She’s shifting.” Jack slipped the phone back into his pocket and reached for my covers. “We have to get her out of here. Now.”

  “We can’t,” Lenny said. “We heard the nurses talking. They’re saying there are wild dogs loose in the hospital. There’ve been several sightings in the last few minutes. Two dogs each time and the sightings are happening on each floor starting from the lobby going up. They’re hunting.”

  “For what?” I asked, swallowing the last of the pain.

  “For you,” Lenny said. Then he looked to Jack. “It’s Marcus. He’s coming to finish what he started and he brought back-up.”

  Marcus? Fear turned my blood to ice, my entire body suddenly trembling.

  “How did he know where she was?” George asked. “We told the police we wanted the name of the hospital kept private. I haven’t seen any news reports that mentioned it.”

  “Damn it.” Jack scrubbed a hand down his face. “He must have followed me. He knew one of you would call and tell me what happened. He just had to wait to see where I went.”

  “The staff here won’t let us just walk out with her,” Lenny said. “Arguing with them might clue Marcus right to us.”

  A piercing lance of pain tore through my body, ripping me in half, breaking bones and tearing muscles. My scream echoed in my brain, deafening me to everything else, pushing my fear over Marcus to the farthest recesses of my mind. I thrashed and twisted on the bed, my body stretching and pulling. I couldn’t control it.

  The writhing sent me over the edge, and I hit the cold hospital floor hard. I barely felt it, my pain threshold already overwhelmed. Somewhere in the back of my mind, far beneath the blaze of agony, I heard my brother call my name. I sensed him rushing toward me and heard Jack warn him back.

  “It’s too late. She’s shifting. We have to make our stand here—now,” Jack said.

  I opened my eyes, watching thick fur push through my skin, covering my arms, blanketing my belly and legs. The fine bones of my hands snapped and shrunk one by one. The thick bones in my legs gave way with loud agonizing cracks. And then the pain got really bad.

  It felt like a razor slicing my face, the bones in my cheeks and jaw shattered, my chin jutting out, my nose growing with it, stretching flesh and muscle-growing tendons and nerves. No one should be able to endure this torture and survive. I should be dead. I wished for it.

  My body curled itself into a ball as best it could, bones rippling down my spine, pushing flesh, stretching into a thick tail. I couldn’t endure another moment. My brain shut down, and blackness pulled me into its protective embrace.

  When I opened my eyes again, the pain was gone. I lifted my head, seeing the world as a flat, dull palette, colors muted but edges crisp.

  “Kate? Stay calm. Stay in control,” my brother said. He was kneeling next to me as I struggled to my feet.

  My balance was extraordinary. I had four centers instead of two. I shook the stiffness from my body, the act sending sensory input from each muscle and nerve ending straight to my brain. My body was suddenly more efficient than I’d ever imagined, each muscle working almost independently of the others. I took a few tentative steps, feeling the power in my legs.

  My senses hummed with information. What my eyes lacked in color perception, I more than made up for with my ears and nose. I sniffed the air, noting the sharp odor of antiseptics, chemicals, sickness—and the cloying perfumes that tried and failed to cover it all.

  I snorted and shook my head, trying to blast the stench from my nose. It helped a little, but I could still smell everything, hear every sound, even the whispers of a man several floors below us.

  “This is it. I do this and it’s over. My life as I know it is over. Damn you, Marcus,” the man said. An instant later, the lights in the hospital flicked out and the room went dark.

  “Aw hell,” George said. “Now what?”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  The world was loud, smelly, and distracting. And I hadn’t even left my hospital room. In my wolf form, I could hear people crying all over the building, calling out for their nurse, their doctor, or just someone they knew. A lot of people were scared and some were angry, but most were just quietly waiting for the lights to come back on.

  Less than three seconds after the man in the basement shut off the power, the generators kicked on. Emergency lights flickered to life, and electricity pulsed to vital machines all over the building.

  George stood at my side, his fingers brushing the thick fur at my shoulder. The feel of his touch was distracting as hell, as if every hair follicle sent a tingle of sensation to my brain. Good Lord, I’d be a ball of putty if anyone decided to pet me. I couldn’t think about it.

  Jack and Lenny stood by the door to my room, heads down, listening. Their hearing was better than humans, although when they didn’t mention hearing the man in the basement, I realized in wolf form, my hearing was even better.

  I wanted to tell them about the man, let them know that Marcus and another wolf were coming up the east stairwell to our floor. I’d heard them break through the door on the floor below, then recognized the sound of their claws scraping the cement stairs as they climbed up. A chill of fear raced through me, but I shook it away. Something else took its place—revenge.

  Bastard stole a piece of what should’ve been my connection to Jack . . . and he tried to eat me. Yeah. He had to pay.

  “Kate, no. Stay here with me,” George said when he felt my muscles shift.

  I looked up at him, willing him to hear what I heard, to know what I knew. Instead my brother smiled at me, rubbed the top of my head between my ears—which felt ah-mazing.

  I mean, if I had to choose between sex and being petted? Okay, I’d pick sex. But petting is seriously a close second.

  “Pretty cool, huh?” he asked, and I rubbed my head against his thigh—which felt way too good. “Wait till you find a grassy field where you can really roll around. It’s friggin’ addictive.”

  No doubt.

  “Someone’s coming,” Jack said in a sharp low tone. “Keep her back.”

  George crouched, fisting his hand in my fur, wrapping an arm around my chest.

  Hey. Back off, bro. He couldn’t hear me, but he understood my distress when I tried to back out of his embrace.

  “Hold still,” he said. “You don’t understand what it’ll be like when a human is near. You have to stay in control. Don’t let your wolf take over. You’ll want to. It’ll feel right. But fight it. You hear me, Kate? Stay with me.”

  Jack gripped the door handle, waiting, listening. I could hear it too, footsteps closing in, rubber soles that squeaked against the linoleum floor. When the human was two steps away, Jack opened the door, careful not to let it swing too wide.

  “Oh, my,” the woman said. “You scared the life out of me. I was just coming in to check on Kate.”

  “She’s fine,” Jack said. “Thank you. In
fact I’d like to make arrangements for her discharge. I want to get her home where she’ll be more comfortable.”

  The woman laughed in dismay. “We can’t discharge her. Your fiancée just had major surgery two days ago, Mr. Pensione. She’s lucky to be alive. The doctors are still amazed at how well she came through, but she’s got a long way to go before she’s recovered enough to leave the hospital.”

  “She’s actually doing very well now,” he said. “Kate’s always been in exceptionally good health. She wants to leave. Now if you can get the paperwork started—”

  “She’s awake? Already?” The nurse’s shoes squeaked a step closer and Jack shifted to block her approach.

  “Not right now. A little while ago she was awake and talking. She’s resting again. But she made it very clear that she’s ready to leave,” he said.

  “Mr. Pensione, in case you didn’t notice, we’re having a bit of a crisis right now,” she said. “I’ll let the doctor know that your fiancée is feeling better. After the power is back on, he’ll come to speak with her about when she can be safely discharged. Now, if you don’t mind, I need to check on her.”

  Her shoes squeaked and Jack shifted again. “I’m afraid that won’t be possible.”

  Lenny glanced at George and me from behind the door, his face tight with worry. He raised a finger to his lips in a gesture for me to keep quiet.

  Really? I’m a wolf, not a moron. Of course I’d stay quiet. The only problem was Marcus and whatever werewolf that was with him, had just broken through the stairwell door on our floor. I could hear the metal creak and bend as they pushed their big heavy bodies against it. It wouldn’t take long for them to sniff us out. I had to warn Jack.

  I pulled against George’s hold, wrenching my head, dipping down trying to leverage myself free. But my brother just held me tighter, clenching my fur in his fists.

  “Kate, stop,” he said in a harsh whisper. “Jack will get rid of her. Just hold on another minute.”

  I wasn’t sure we had that long.

  “Excuse me, Mr. Pensione,” the nurse said. “I understand you’re used to getting your way, but in this hospital your money and clout don’t amount to a hill of beans. Now that’s my patient in there, and you will let me see her—or I’ll call security and have you removed.”